Spur.



W. A. BARR.

SPUR.

APPLIGATION FILED JUNE 13, 1912.

Patented June 17, 1913.

6 O t m m w a WILLIAM ALVA BARR, 0F SILVEBT ON, OREGON.

SPUB.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 17, 1913.

Application filed June 13, 1912. Serial No. 703,474.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM ALVA BARR,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Silverton, in the county of Marion and State of Oregon, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Spurs; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to harness, and more especially to spurs; and the object of the same is to produce a spur whose rowel is connected with the yoke or heel clamp by means which will permit it to spring or yield downward to a certain degree and then check its further movement, for the purposes hereinafter described. This object is accomplished by the constructions set forth herein and shown in the drawings wherein- Figure 1 is a perspective view of this spur complete, the spur illustrated being designed for the right foot of the rider. Fig. 2 is a central longitudinal section showing the arm as depressed to its greatest extent. Fig. 3 is a perspective view similar to Fig. 1 showing the preferred form of my invention. Fig. 4 is a perspective detail of the pivot shown in Fig. 3, partly broken away to better illustrate the spring and the studs with which its extremities engage.

In the drawings the letter Y designates the yoke or support, S is the strap or chain holding the same to the heel of the wearer, and R is the rowel which is constructed in the shape of a spur wheel whose points are made as sharp as may be necessary.

The yoke Y at its rear end has a pair of spaced lugs 1 projecting to the rear on parallel lines, having a rivet 3 through them, and having their upper corners 2 struck on curved lines around the center of said rivet while their lower corners 12 are angular as perhaps best seen in Fig. 2. Between these lugs and on said rivet is pivoted a tongue 4: formed at the front end of an arm 5 whose rear end is bifurcated as at 6, and the rowel R is pivoted within the bifurcation. At opposite sides of the tongue 4 are formed shoulders 7 which are so disposed that they are adapted to move freely over the rounded corners 2 as the arm 5 is raised but will come into contact with the angular corners 12 of the lugs when the arm is depressed to the position shown in Fig. 2 and thereby prevent its further descent. In Figs. 1 and 2 the reference numeral 8 designates a leaf spring riveted or otherwise secured as at 9 beneath the yoke Y, with its body extending past the pivotal point between the lugs and arm and its free end bearing upward against the latter as shown.

In Fig. 3 the parts are much the same but with these exceptions, to wit: The lugs are connected across their bottom by a web 10 which is carried to the rear and constitutes the bottom of a trough, the sides 11 thereof rising from the edges of said bottom as shown and being in effect continuations from the angular lower corners of said lugs. The arm 15 is of a width to fit within said trough rather loosely, its shoulders 7 are omitted, and its front end 14 is of the same width as its body and is pivoted between the lugs as at 3 so that it can swing around their rounded corners in the manner above described. Instead of a leaf spring, I employ a coiled spring 18 disposed between the bottom 10 of the trough and the lower side of the arm, and its extremities by preference engage studs 19 to keep them from slipping out of place.

All parts of this device are of the desired sizes, shapes, proportions and materials, and details may be altered without departing from the principle of my invention.

In use, the spur is applied to the heel of the wearer in a manner which will be clear, and he takes his seat in the saddle and rides as usual. When now it is desired to spur the horse, the toe is turned slightly out ward which brings the rowel toward the horses flank, and thereafter by bearing the heel inward and upward the rowel is forced against the horses flesh which is pricked gently with the points thereof. In this action the arm turns as the spring permits, so that under ordinary circumstances too great a prick cannot be given to the hide; but in case the rider desires to spur the horse more vigorously, he presses harder so as to overcome the tension of the spring and the arm is turned around its pivot until the shoulders 7 strike the angular extremities 12 of the lugs 1 in Figs. 1 and 2. or in the construction shown in Fig. 3 the convolutions of the coiled spring 18 come into contact with each other or perhaps the extremities of the studs 19 strike together; and the points on the rowel wheel may then be pushed into the hide with vigor. Thus the peculiar form of pivot employed imparts to the spur wheel or rowel both a yielding support when the pressure is light and a rigid support when the pressure is more vigorous. While it is true that this dual form of support would exist if the spur wheel were replaced by a single point or perhaps a plurality of points rigid with the arm, when the latter is pivot-ed to the yoke I find it of advantage to employ a spur wheel rotatable within the arm so that the flesh will be prickedbut not torn or lacerated in case the. rider should press gently at first and then harder and therefore cause the arm to swing on its pivot while the rowel was engaging the flesh. A further advantage arising from constructing the spur in thls manner lies in the fact that it sticks up from the back of the heel rather than straight out behind it, and is thus out of the Way when the rider is walking. A still further advantage lies in the fact that when the equestrian gets off his horse this spur yields as it strikes and does not catch fast on everything it engages.

What is claimed as new is;

1. The herein described spur comprising a yoke, means for fastening it to the heel, an arm bifurcated at its rear end, a rowel wheel pivoted in the bifurcation, a pivotal connection between the front end of the arm and the rear end of the yoke, and a spring having one end connected with and supported by the yoke and the other bearing said arm upward with yielding force.

2. The herein described spur comprising a yoke, a pair of spaced lugs projecting rigidly from the yoke to the rear and hav ing their upper corners rounded, a transverse pivot through said lugs, an arm having its front end mounted on said pivot, a rowel carried by the rear end of the arm, a spring connected at one end to said yoke and its other end normally raising said arm around its pivot, and means for limiting the descent of the arm.

3. The herein described spur comprising a yoke having at its rear a pair of spaced lugs with their upper corners rounded and a channeled projection extending to the rear from their lower corners, an arm having its front end inserted between said lugs and its body extending over said channeled projection, a pivot through its front end and said lugs, a rowel carried by its rear end, and an expansive spring seated at its lower end in said channel with its upper end normally raising said arm, for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM ALVA BARR.

Witnesses W. A. BEEBE, PAUL THEBORBAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

